Bhopal, Dec 12 (IANS): Senior Congress leader and former minister in Madhya Pradesh, Raja Pateria, has triggered a massive controversy with his statement "be ready to kill PM Modi if you want to save the constitution".

Pateria later tried to clarify his statement, claiming that by "killing" he meant "to defeat". However, the state BJP unit launched a scathing attack on the Congress, saying that "this was the real face of the Congress".

An FIR has been registered against Pateria, state home minister Narottam Mishra told the media later Monday. "Such statements show that today's Congress is not Mahatma Gandhi's Congress. It's the Congress of Italy that is afflicted with a Mussolini mindset," Mishra said.

Along with several party leaders, Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said the comments exposed the Congress's real sentiment.

"PM Modi lives in the hearts of the people, he is the centre of the admiration and faith of the entire country. Congress people can't face the PM in the electoral battle, and one Congress leader talks about his murder. This is the height of jealousy. This is excess hatred. Congress's real sentiments have been revealed, but such things won't be tolerated," Chouhan added.

Shivraj Singh Chouhan-led government has ordered a police case against Pateria. The BJP leaders called it an "unpardonable crime".

In the viral remarks, Pateria addresses what appears to be a gathering of party workers, wherein he tell them: "Modi will end elections, Modi will divide India on the basis of religion, caste, language; the lives of Dalits, tribals, and minorities are in danger. If the constitution is to be saved, then be ready to kill Modi."

Later in the same video, the Congress leader claims the word "murder" in his speech means defeat. He said he follows Mahatma Gandhi's ideology of non-violence, and that he meant it was necessary to defeat PM Modi electorally to protect minorities. The video has emerged from Pawai town in Madhya Pradesh's Panna district, sources told IANS.